To Be With You
by Moxie Danger
Summary: It's not always easy to get what you want, to get who you need. Sometimes, the ridiculous attempts make it all the better. Klavier X Ema
1. Free Snackoos Almost Makes One Smile

A loud thrum vibrated through the air. Still, it went unnoticed by the brown-haired miss who was currently sleeping her overworked backside off in her not-so-comfortable bed. It didn't matter that the bed wasn't comfortable though, she still dreamt.

And boy, what a dream it was. Not the first of its kind, but the shock it frequently provided never seemed to fade.

Dark eyes fluttered open and a groan filled the room. Ema sat up slowly, looking blearily around the room. She wondered what woke her up, she was just so tired. 'Was it the stupid fridge?' Shaking her head, she immediately dismissed that idea. Ema was a heavy sleeper. A very heavy sleeper with a mild tendency to talk in her sleep, thanks to her bizarre subconscious mind. Thank god nobody knew about that little fact.

Her dream began trickling back into the folds of her bleary head. She concentrated, ready to cuss the dream's outcome for further depriving her sleep time. Ema, unfortunately, didn't have that wonderful ability to fall back into slumber five seconds after she wakes up. How people actually did that was a mystery. A mystery that had self-proclaimed scientific genius Ema stumped.

'Let's see, what was it?' She placed her index finger on the center of her lower lip, a habit she was constantly made fun of for by that ridiculous blond man, _Prosecutor_-

…Gavin.

Light blond hair.

Steel gray-blue eyes.

His skin. His body. His voice.

_Klavier._

"Oh. Well, shit," she groaned, burying her head into the pillow as she remembered what her dream was about. Feeling her face heat up, she abruptly dumped herself out of bed and made a dash for the toilet where the necessary equipment for cooling her blushing features were located. A tap, check. Cold water, check. More cold water, check. A giant plunger to whack herself with, not there.

She splashed her face and arms with icy cold three-in-the-morning water and made a mental note to buy a damn plunger. Or possibly something harder which could result in greater pain.

On second thought, why should she be the one to receive a bludgeoning plunger to the head? By right, _he_ should be the bludgeoned party. For obvious reasons, of course.

It's his fault she dreamt about him now. His fault she's always so dog tired. And you know why? Because he's the one who overworks her at the Police Department and he's the one who keeps her up at night (never mind that it's a dream Klavier doing that).

Ema looked at herself in the mirror, not seeing her wrinkled nightdress and unruly hair, instead noticing the beginnings of dark circles under her eyes. "Oh no," she groused, touching the light circles with her fingertips. He was bound to notice these if they got just a little worse. More fun to poke at her. That jerk.

Compact powder could only cover so much. Not to mention the fact that Ema absolutely disliked make-up. Plainly, she _detested_ make-up. It was just too much of a bother. Bad for one's skin. And it took up valuable space in her bag. Space that's reserved only for test tubes and scientific knick-knacks. As if mundane _make-up_ items could earn a spot in her bag.

She laughed briefly, the images of her dream slowly fading from her conscious mind.

"Good. That's it, go away," she said, glancing at her reflection once more before going back to bed. Sleep was an important thing, especially if you were an attempted scientific investigator.

Especially if you were Ema Skye, attempted scientific investigator with a rock star prosecutor boss. Aptly named, Klavier Gavin.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Eyes darting around the precinct, Ema made her way to her department as fast as she could. While trying to look professionally cool, of course. That went without saying. As long as she acted normally, no one would notice her. No one would talk to her. No one would bother her. No one at all. Except-

"Fraulein Skye."

"Shit," she hissed under her breath, turned and forced herself to think cool, calm. "Yes?"

And she faltered, unsurprisingly. She couldn't help being taken aback every time she saw him, she couldn't figure that one out either. Not like she ever bothered to run experiments and figure out the variables. Not like she ever bothered to seek a conclusion. Not like she _wanted_ to anyway. Or maybe she did. Forget it.

"Nice day, isn't it, Fraulein?"

She gritted her teeth, "Wonderful."

"It's a good day to be out and about at a crime scene, ja?"

"Of course."

"It doesn't look like it's going to rain, does it? It's nice and cloudy enough to be comforta-"

"Why. Are. You. Talking. About the _weather_?"

Klavier grinned. "I'm making conversation. It looked like you needed some loosening up."

Ema counted to three in her head and forced a brief smile, "Oh. Well, thank you. Goodbye, _sir_."

She turned and walked to her desk, congratulating herself on keeping her cool and throwing him off track. 'He'll never suspect a thing,' she thought to herself, proudly.

And thus, her morning routine began: Dump bag on table. Switch on computer. Tie hair. Retie shoe ribbons. Place pink scientific glasses on head. Wear scientific lab coat. Pull packet of Snackoos from bag.

Wait a second. She opened her bag wider. Peering inside, she moved the test tubes around glumly. Snackoo stock gone. "Great," she mumbled. "Snackoo-less for a day."

Her vision was invaded by an obnoxious snack packet that was swinging innocently in front of her face. She took it automatically before realizing what it was. After looking at it blankly for half a second, she registered the much loved Snackoo packing. Ema almost smiled, she could feel the right corner her mouth lift slightly.

A quiet laugh floated by her ears, she looked up. Klavier was walking away, twirling an empty plastic bag.

She stuttered, glued to her seat. She felt her cheeks heat. She called out her thanks. He didn't turn. He didn't stop.

He did wave his plastic wielding hand. And he laughed again.

.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.

Oh boy, a first chapter. Can't help getting excited over this!

This is obviously going to be a Klavier X Ema fanfiction so I hope you guys'll like it.

Review if you have the time. Or even if you don't, tee hee. Much obliged, and imaginary popcorn for everyone! (I haven't had popcorn in a while and am undergoing withdrawals) Alas.

Lots of love,

Be


	2. A Plaster and a Snackoo

Office sounds filtered in and out of Ema's ears, not that she was paying attention. The tap of keyboards, the clicking of mouses, the rustle of papers, all uninteresting and muffled noises. The only sound she was paying attention to would be that of the Snackoo pack she was tossing between her hands. She wasn't really looking at it though, she was looking at the doorway where Klavier Gavin exited.

A closer look at her features would immediately tell you that she was relieved with the supply of Snackoos for the day. It would also tell you that she was rather displeased with the fact that it was him who provided that supply. Still, Ema was a woman of opportunity. A free packet of Snackoos was nothing to complain about, regardless of where, or specifically who, it came from.

Scoffing silently, she ripped the packet open and began munching. She felt herself relax slightly and sank into her chair, ignoring the hard back and plastic something under her bum. Cheap office chairs couldn't be comfortable; office life just wasn't like that. Comfortable office chairs were only provided for _actual_ scientific investigators.

She frowned and the munching got louder. Seriously, she was as _real_ as a scientific investigator was ever going to get. She was passionate and constantly full of wonder with anything regarding the world of science and crime. The buzz it gave, the rush it brought.

Who cares if she failed the exam anyway? Science couldn't be limited to mere bits of paper and the opinion of stuck-up officers. Those measly things couldn't possibly measure her competency for the world of scientific investigation. The mere thought was laughable. 'So there, you close-minded backsides,' she thought, imagining a major Snackoo-ing session with the people responsible for flunking her.

Half a packet gone in less than an hour. Damn. She was supposed to be rationing, this packet is meant to last for the rest of the day. Ration, right. She quickly tied the packet with a stray rubber band on her desk. Her hands twitched, tempted to just snap the rubber band and keep popping those wonderful little treats into her mouth. She stared at the packet as it sat innocently on the desk in front of her.

Must. Ration. Gah. 'Get to the crime scene. Right. Leave the Snackoos behind for later.' Ema nodded once to herself and swiftly got up, grabbed her bag and stalked out of the precinct. Patting herself on the back, she made her way to the exiting gate of the precinct.

'That wasn't so hard, I'll just come back and get it in the eveni-' She stopped and checked her watch. A second of quick mental time calculation. That would be… about six hours without her Snackoos. 'Crap.' She ran back to her desk and stuffed the packet in her bag, narrowing her eyes at her fellow detectives who snickered.

Turning on her heel, she marched out of the office a second time. A laugh sounded softly; a laugh that she heard so often, she could get herself annoyed just by _thinking_ of the damn sound. Not that she'd ever want to think of it. Perish the thought.

Still, Ema couldn't help turning her head towards the direction of the sound. It was a strange reflex action towards that particular laugh. And that annoyed her even more.

Leaning on a doorway to her right was Klavier Gavin, much to her chagrin. He was smirking and obviously paying attention to the half-exposed Snackoo pack in her bag. Ema huffed and stuffed it further in, promptly turning away and exiting the building.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Flashing her detective's badge, Ema entered the crime scene area without a hitch, feeling the building buzz she always got during investigations. Absently receiving a file on the situation at hand, she noted several blaring facts before turning her attention to the report she held.

One, this piece of land has obviously been unused for a very long time. Two, grass and weeds were everywhere. Three, they made her legs itchy. And four, there was a dead body up in a tree.

Wait, _what?_ Ema looked up and frowned. "What's he doing up there?" She enquired, glancing at the young officer who handed her the report.

Someone tugged her hair. She didn't like it. Whipping around, she glared at the offender and muttered, "You. Why am I not surprised?"

Klavier smiled and waved the young officer away. "You know, Fraulein, that report was passed to you for something. You might as well read it before asking pointless questions, ja?"

Narrowing her eyes at him, she turned away and opened the report, ignoring his soft chuckle. She skimmed through the report and tilted her head in confusion. "He's…smiling?" She looked up at the corpse on the tree and noticed that its features were, in fact, very peaceful.

"I'd assume it's suicide. Dying in an empty field, seated in a tree, _smiling_. Sounds like a pretty calm way to go," Ema stated, refusing to look at the prosecutor. "He even took his shoes off before climbing the tree. Makes sense."

"That's what I think too, but one cannot be too sure, ja? At least until the results come out."

"Then what are you doing here? You haven't even been hired to prosecute anyone. For all you know, this could just be another suicide case," she huffed, walking away from him.

He followed her. "I enjoy watching the detectives work."

"Oh? Then go over there. There are three other detectives to watch," she replied shortly, not pausing in her stride.

"I enjoy watching this detective work," he answered, poking her back once to emphasize his point.

What she did next surprised him. She squealed. And tripped over her own feet. Stumbling and trying to catch her balance for three seconds gave her enough reason to be thoroughly annoyed with Klavier Gavin for the rest of the day. She shot one more glare at him and resumed her march.

He looked thoughtful, caught up to her and poked her back again. She squealed once more and actually fell this time. Klavier began laughing upon realizing that the grouchy Fraulein was, in fact, majorly ticklish. He stopped as soon as he started, realizing she was on her knees and seething at her scraped palm. The seething was then swiftly directed at him as he pulled her arms up and let her stand.

"Are you happy now?" she hissed, feeling a sharp sting on her palm. She looked at it and groaned, beginning to brush the grains of sand and stone from her injured hand.

Klavier frowned as he noticed several drops of blood ooze its way out of the wound and down her wrist. He took her hand and began picking the dirt from it. Gently, carefully. She froze and looked up at his face, noting the frown and concentration it sported. "Apologies, Fraulein. I did not mean for your hand to suffer."

Ema pulled her hand back and her breath hitched. She could feel her cheeks getting hot. 'Oh, no. Don't blush in front of him.' She took a step back, realizing he was standing _right_ in front of her.

"Don't worry, no harm done. It's just a small graze. I mean, see? It's barely even bleeding," she began babbling and chuckled nervously. "Right. I'm going to go get a plaster or something." She backed off, ready to make a run for it.

Klavier's hand shot out and he held her wrist. "Not to worry. I have one here, Fraulein," he said, reaching into his pocket and pulling out a plaster. "You have some water in your bag, ja?" She stuttered and settled for a simple nod, she forgot how to say "yes". She began to reach for her bag when he stopped her.

"Allow me. Do not strain your hand," he reached into her bag and took out a small water bottle. As he unscrewed it, she remembered how to speak. Scowling at him, she muttered, "I do have two of them, you know."

He laughed mildly, "I am aware. Just allow me, Fraulein. This will sting." A brief warning before he trickled some water onto the graze, simultaneously running his thumb across it to remove the remaining grains. Ema winced and her hand twitched reflexively. "Ouch," she stated in a matter-of-fact tone. He smiled a little and placed the bottle back in her bag.

Quickly opening the plaster, he gently placed it on the wound and ran his thumb over it twice. "There," he murmured, running his thumb over it again, not letting go of her hand. "Is it alright?" Klavier raised his gaze from Ema's hand and immediately noticed her stained cheeks. He smirked.

"Oh. Um, right. Thank you," she choked out. She pulled her hand from his light hold abruptly and took a step back. "Is it alright?" he grinned. "Let me check it again."

Two more steps back. Holding her hand closer to her chest, Ema answered hurriedly, "No, no. It's fine. Very nicely done. No need to check."

"Really? It might cause more pain if the plaster's not on right."

She took another step away from his reaching hand and laughed nervously. "Really, seriously, it's just fine. Thank you aga-Oh!" She tripped again. Over a rock this time.

But this time, Klavier was fast enough to catch her. One tanned hand shot out to catch her arm and one to catch her around the waist. He set her upright and laughed at her shocked face. Resting one arm on her shoulder, he asked, "Really now, Fraulein Detektiv. I never pegged you for a clumsy one."

She pulled away, "I'm not usually so clumsy, really."

More laughter.

"I'm serious!" she snapped. "It's just that you keep distrac-"

Ema paused mid-sentence and walked off, fuming in embarrassment.

As always, he caught up to her, grinning. "I _distract_ you, do I? Well, Fraulein, that's really something-"

Ema raised her hand to stop him and faced the entrance of the field, "I thought I heard… Oh, no. How do they always _find_ you? They're going to mess up the crime scene! Again!"

Klavier frowned at the sudden disappearance of her angry embarrassment and the appearance of flat-out annoyance. He turned to the entrance of the field and took in the horde of screaming fangirls. "Excuse me, Fraulein," he grinned and headed for his group of fans.

Watching him go, she yanked out her half-empty packet of Snackoos and began stuffing them in her mouth, munching angrily. Two minutes of watching him sign autographs and take photos with a bunch girlies and Ema noticed that she was firstly, holding an empty, crumpled packet. Secondly, relatively closer to the crowd than she previously was. 'That's weird,' she thought, fuming. 'Snackoo supply officially zero.'

Just as she was opting to run to a nearby grocery store for more Snackoos, a familiar looking packet caught her eye. One of the fans was holding a brand new packet of Snackoos. 'Yes!' Ema began walking towards the crowd, preparing to buy the damn snacks from the girl who was currently passing it to…Prosecutor Gavin? 'Huh?'

Close enough to hear the girl's excited chatter, Ema paused to listen and learn about the presence of the snack. Her snack. "SO, I like, saw you in a grocery shop this morning and you were buying Snackoos! Then, I like, ran home to update my fanpage and found out you were coming here! I had like, the most brilliant idea to buy you a packet cos like-"

Ema heard enough. She rolled her eyes and distanced herself from the group. Feeling slightly flattered that he had bothered to stop by a grocery shop to buy her snack, she turned to glance at him for a second. And saw him eating the Snackoos. 'What?'

Now, he was offering and sharing it with the fans. All giggling and joking. 'Is he going to save _one_ piece for me?' Ema grouched. 'He's got the screaming girlies on his mind. Where the hell would _I_ come in?'

She shook her head, forcing herself to remember the packet he bought for her this morning. Still, she couldn't completely dispel the flash of resentment as he laughed with his fans, emptying the packet of Snackoos without a thought for her.

Ema suppressed a sigh and turned away, walking towards the group of detectives. She deftly shook out the crumbs from the crumpled packet she held and folded it neatly. She put it in her bag.

The smile on his face never left as he spoke to his fans, he was a professional. Still, Klavier turned to look for Ema just as the last Snackoo was nabbed by a fan. His smile wavered when he saw her slowly walking away, tucking something into her bag.

.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.

Second chapter, whoo yeah!

I am content after consuming two cups of fruit jelly.

Further make my day with reviews and comments…please! Have a nice day, everybody, yay.

Love,

Be


	3. An Emptily Special Snackoo Packet

Scattered crumbs of previously glorious Snackoos lay forlorn on the grass, unnoticed by the black combat boots worn by rock star prosecutor, Klavier Gavin. Needless to say, they turned to flaky bits of dust once they were stepped on as Klavier strode towards Ema. His fans were falling over each other as the left the field, busy recovering from a flash of that superstar smile.

Having fans mindlessly wrapped around his finger was fun…ninety percent of the time. It was undeniably fun for a man to have masses of girls fawning over him. Though, the other ten percent was during times like these, when he'd rather be flirting with a certain Fraulein that was currently, _possibly_ angry with him.

His hands clenched for a second while his mind worked. 'Usually, she'd be standing by, sulking or trying to shoo the girls. But today…she just went off on her own. Did anything happen?' Klavier released his clenched fist and kept walking, confident that nothing had happened. It was most definitely just a late reaction from the plaster scene.

And he grinned, remembering her clumsy sentences and even clumsier steps. Now, _that_ was a woman that could make him laugh. The grin slid right off his face as Ema turned and saw him walking over to where the detectives were. Specifically, the grin slid when he saw the somewhat intimidating expression on her face.

Boy, was she angry. Klavier's eyes widened slightly and he raised his right hand in an attempted greeting. Her eyes narrowed as she watched a meek smile form on his face. Huffing quietly to herself, she turned on her heel and walked off. Ema obviously didn't feel like speaking to him at the moment. Or at all.

With his long legs and quick stride, he caught up to her. Very easily, in fact. So easily, it increased her annoyance tenfold. He tapped her shoulder and asked, "Where are you going?"

"Away from you."

"That was a short answer, ja?"

Ema abruptly whipped around and glared at him. The second she did, she thought of him laughing and sharing Snackoos with the fangirls. 'Couldn't he have left just _one_ for me?' Her glare intensified and she muttered, "Jerk," before stalking past him. Not without pushing him out of her way.

The size difference between them didn't really let the shove make an impact on him anyway. At least, not a physical one. The impact it made on his thoughts though, was pretty shocking. He gaped, frowned and turned to follow her. Klavier was evidently surprised at her behavior, but what's more, he was surprised at the glare she handed him.

It wasn't full of sheer annoyance as all the other glares he'd received. This was a little different. Just a little. "What's the matter?"

"Nothing."

"Don't be silly. What has gotten you so worked up?"

"Don't worry about it."

"Was it my fans? You've never gotten so uptight about them before."

"Well, maybe it's because they've never fed you before," she retorted sarcastically.

He laughed and relaxed. "Is that what's wrong? The food they got me?"

Ema's face flamed and she internally cursed her stupid need to retort. "I couldn't care less if they got you gourmet lobsters to stuff yourself with."

A grin. "But it wasn't lobster, ja? It was _Snackoos_."

More grinning from Klavier. More scowling from Ema.

For two seconds.

Footsteps on grass turned to pavement sounded in Ema's ears as she stomped down the street, trying to make the stupid flush of anger and embarrassment on her cheeks just disappear.

"Why would I be bothered by the Snackoos? You got me some earlier anyway," she grimaced. 'Look dignified, like you don't give a damn about the fan snacks.' It's easy enough to convince yourself. If you didn't have to prove it to anyone.

"I'm still trying to figure that one out myself, Fraulein. Maybe you could just tell me? It would save the trouble," he suggested amiably.

"Well, I happen to _enjoy_ your floundering."

"Do I look like I'm floundering?" An eyebrow raised. She shot a glance to her right at him and her eyes narrowed, "No, you jer-Oh!"

And she tripped again. Not surprising, really. With her stomping steps and lack of concentration on where her feet was going. Without surprise, he caught her right before her knees hit the ground. Though the angle was a little strange, with him being on her right. And that led her to lose the little bit of balance she did manage to save, promptly making her fall on him.

That didn't knock him down though. Klavier Gavin is one prosecutor that possessed enough balance for himself and excess balance to provide to clumsy Fraulein Detektivs such as Ema Skye. Which he was only too glad to do because really, only such situations would allow him to hold her, albeit briefly. He looked down at her, smirking at her shocked, further reddening face.

He opened his mouth to speak but he was rudely interrupted as Ema pushed his hands off her arms and glared at him. "I would have been fine."

"No sense in hurting those lovely knees, Fraulein."

"You're insufferable, you know that?" she exclaimed, jabbing a finger at his sternum.

"You're being ridiculous, you know that?" he mimicked. "Now, what's the matter with the fan food?"

"It wasn't nice of you, that's the matter!" she exclaimed, frustrated.

"What do you mean? They gave it, I ate it with them," he frowned, confused.

"Well, they- I- You-," Ema turned her glare to the floor, cheeks beginning to color again. She huffed. He tilted his head and waited.

"I thought- I thought you'd at least save one for me," she rolled her eyes, attempting nonchalance.

"But-"

"Forget it, I'm just overreacting. It's just Snackoos anyway, right?" Ema continued walking down the street again.

"Fraulein-"

"I'm going back to the precinct to do some work, you should be getting back to the Prosecutors Office," she said in a rush and began walking faster, ahead of him.

He didn't try to catch up to her. About twenty steps away, she stopped and turned around. She looked at him for a second and felt her heart thud just a little bit faster as she took in his mildly thoughtful face. She reached into her bag and touched the plastic surface of the empty packet of Snackoos.

Letting the tiniest of smiles lift her lips slightly, she called out, "Thank you for the Snackoos this morning. Really…they were great." She took a few steps back. "And…I'm sorry about earlier. See you tomorrow."

Ema gave a short, awkward wave and turned away.

Klavier waved right back and smiled.

Further along the street, there was a nice bench. Ema saw it and most gratefully sat on it. She picked at the chipping paint with her index fingernail and began absent-mindedly flicking bits of paint off the bench. Relieving her bag from her shoulder, she set it down beside her and pulled out the folded Snackoo packet.

She unfolded it and simply looked at it. "What on earth am I going to do with this?" she muttered to herself, turning it around and scanning the nutrition content: something she's never bothered to check before. Not that she was really reading it now. "This is just stupid, I'm turning into a hoarder." She looked around. "And I'm talking to myself."

Ema shook her head and folded the packet again. After making sure it wasn't creased in her bag, she got up and stretched. 'Where to?' She looked left and then right, as if waiting for a suggestion to hop in sight.

If she was, she gave up quickly enough and groaned. "Precinct, right. Off I go," she announced to the bench. It didn't reply, that was to be expected. Rolling her eyes, she left the bench.

Strolling. Ema tossed the word around her head as she walked and decided it was a nice word. In fact, it was pretty catchy. Strolling. That was something she'd like to do sometime, instead of just walking to places she had to get to like she always does. By herself. Now, that didn't sound that great.

Tossing the word around a little more, she concluded scientifically that she would very much enjoy having a stroll with someone sometime in the near future. She finalized that it'd be Phoenix to accompany her on her first stroll.

Who else better, really? Phoenix Wright, Ace Attorney extraordinaire once more. Best friend and the big-brother-she-never-had kind of material. Perfect candidate for first time strolling experience.

That thought lifted her spirits enough for her to get through the day without pining for Snackoos…much.

She snapped at several lazy detectives and downed five glasses of water, looked at the clock ten times and her watch eight times, read through four reports and wrote three, went to the toilet twice, and hummed approximately half a song.

Before stopping in shock and downing her sixth glass of water. 'Guilty Love.' She scowled. "Pfft, it's a stupid song anyway." Glancing at the clock once more, she mentally cheered when she read the time and began haphazardly arranging her desk items.

Time for freedom from the boring bore of the precinct. More specifically, the bore when he wasn't here. But of course, that wasn't what she was thinking of, because she just didn't care about his ridiculously glimmerous presence. Or so she'd like everyone to think.

She left the precinct and walked to her little apartment which was very strategically located 15 minutes away by foot. A slow and occasionally clumsy foot, that is.

'Home,' she thought briefly as she locked the door behind her and took off her lab coat. And she then began her regular routine of putting together and eating whatever she had in the fridge for a balanced dinner before showering.

What she did after that was never really a regular routine. She'd do whatever her mood compelled her to do, and that usually left her placing her nose in a book for quite some time. Consequently leading to her being blur and sleepy as she brushed her teeth and washed her face.

Dumping herself on the bed, she absently moved her fingers on an imaginary piano to the tune of Guilty Love as her eyes shut.

Without surprise, Ema's last few drowsy thoughts before her mind shut down were of Klavier Gavin and empty Snackoo packets floating around him.

.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.

Helloooo!

My sincerest apologies for updating not-so-quickly. It's been a little weird. My Internet connection, I mean. It died for several days.

It's back now so, tadaa! A not very long, but love-filled chapter for all!

Please let me know what you think. Thank you so much!

Love,

Be


	4. Frauleins and GlueWrapped Presents

The entrance hall of the precinct echoed with the footsteps of a lab coat-wearing detective. Usually, it'd be bustling with detectives and policemen. That's only if one enters the precinct for work on time. Which is what Detective Skye didn't do. In fact, she was almost an hour late.

Muttering curses under her breath as she clocked in, Ema quickly scanned the area for tall, blond rockstar prosecutors before entering the office, feeling mildly relieved at his absence. She wasn't sure how she'd act around him today, after the entire shindig the day before. A disturbed groan escaped her as she felt a repeat of yesterday's self-disdain surround her.

'How could I have gotten so _jealous_?' Ema mentally groused as she strode to her desk, ignoring the glances of the other detectives and the obvious comments about her current instance of lateness. 'And what's more, how could I have _shown_ him that that I was jealous?' She plopped herself in front of her desk, closed her eyes and dropped her head down to the table to try and inflict some self-pain. The attempt wasn't what one would call successful though.

Her head hit something not exactly soft. And it sounded somewhat…crunchy? She cracked an eye open and saw a mess of reddish-orange swirls. 'What? Oh, right.' Ema raised her head a couple of inches and allowed her eye to focus on the strange object. It was a present. A neatly wrapped, nicely sized present.

She cocked her head to the side, the thing was obviously on the wrong desk. She picked it up, ready to get up and hand it over to the information desk in the entrance hall, thinking it'd be good for those speakers in the office to be put to good use once in a while.

A peach colored, folded piece of paper with her name on it caught her attention. "Ema" was written in the most elegant writing she'd ever seen her name in. The pen used was obviously the lurid pink colored pen sitting in the stationery mug on her desk. She'd recognize that ink anywhere. Regardless, the writing made the fun ink look unworthy to be written in such a style.

Her name looked good, she observed. It was a pity her name wasn't a little longer; she would've liked to see more of that writing. Hold on a second. The card's folded, meaning there had to be something written on the inside. That meant there was more writing to be read.

Ema made herself comfortable and flipped open the card, her eyes immediately noticing the name at the bottom, written in the same wonderful writing. 'Except strangely, the name seems to make the word seem more beautiful,' Ema thought absently. 'Urgh, that was a ridiculous thought.'

Something clunked in her head as the name really sunk in. "_Klavier_?" she muttered incredulously as she reread the name several times, just to make sure she got it right. She went through the facts frantically. If the pen used was hers, that meant he was sitting here, in her seat. Writing on her desk. But she was late, so she never saw any of that.

'What's a gift from _him _doing _here_?' she thought, a confused frown forming on her face. Shaking her head, she looked at the first line of the card and began reading.

_Hello, Fraulein._

_Don't throw this away just yet, bear with a few more lines._

_Pardon me for using your pen and…hello again._

_I wanted to apologize for yesterday and give you this but you're not here yet. So, I found this pretty paper and began writing. Very nice stationery you have here._

_Well, Fraulein, enjoy the gift._

_Klavier_

Ema's eyes ran through the lines again and she took a look at the wrapped present on her desk. Folding the card carefully and placing it on her desk, she picked up the gift and turned it around, looking for the ends of cellophane tape to tear off. And she found a total of zero bits of tape. 'Strange,' she stated mentally.

She shook her head and stuck her finger in a small opening in the corner and slowly separated the two sides of paper. Opening one end of the gift, she pulled out whatever was inside and felt a small smile make an appearance. It was a packet of Snackoos, adorned with a bright pink ribbon. Slightly wrinkled, but portraying obvious chirpiness nonetheless.

Shooting a glance at the clock, Ema's smile disappeared as she realized her break wouldn't be for another two hours. She sighed and put the packet back in the wrapper, making the sure the ribbon wasn't folded. After the gift was nicely visible in a corner of her desk, she began the boring torture of reading and filing reports written by junior detectives.

Work in the precinct was deathly dull when there wasn't an exciting court case going on. There weren't any crime scenes to investigate, evidence to be found, deductions to be deduced or possible conclusions to be made from evidence.

Being a proper detective, Ema was appointed to tutoring the juniors when she didn't have a case on her hands. Which was pretty much crap, really. The juniors were boring and unimaginative, causing them to write insanely successful sleep-inducing reports every single time.

An hour went by. And another. Lunch break was signaled by the sound of seats dragging and the rustle of people heading for the door. 'Fantastic, break time.'

Ema grabbed her bag and her present, careful not to wrinkle the wrapper any further, pushed in her chair and made a wild dash to the taxi stand about a block from the precinct. Her foodless stomach growled but she astutely ignored it, instead paying attention to the yellow car heading her way. She got into the cab holding the present carefully in front of her and directed the driver to the Prosecutors' Office.

Getting down, she walked briskly to the lift and made her way to Prosecutor Gavin's office. She lost her way twice and had to ask for directions. She then realized she had walked past his office both times when she thought she was lost and frowned at her off-putting stupidity.

She knocked the door absently while marveling at the fact that she missed the shiny plaque with his name on it twice as she walked past. Hearing a "Yes?" from behind the door, she opened it and stepped inside, allowing the door to close on its own.

"Fraulein?" Klavier's surprised voice rang in her ears and she looked at him seated behind his desk with a guitar in hand. She rolled her eyes as she remembered how happily free prosecutors really were without a court case going on. "To what do I owe the pleasure?" his voice enquired.

Ema looked at him and froze as she took in his face and eyes. She forgot what she was supposed to do when she got here. "Um, hi. I just- Uh-," she stuttered. A smile was flashed her way as he placed the guitar on the desk and walked towards her. He looked at the wrapped packet she was holding and asked confusedly, "Do you not want the Snackoos?"

She gave a start. "Of course I do! I just-," she cut off, hearing his light chuckle. She glared at him and softened almost immediately. "I just wanted to thank you. It was really nice of you. And I wanted to say that you needn't apologize for yesterday, it was no big deal. And I also wanted to say sorry again. I mean, I said sorry yester-"

He raised his hand to stop her and smiled. "You like the ribbon?"

She wrinkled her nose. "It's obnoxious…but cute."

"Why, thank you, Fraulein. Nice to know you appreciate my taste in gift-wrapping."

"Speaking of which, how did you wrap it without cello tape?" she asked, holding up the gift and showing him the opening. "See? No tape."

He laughed, "I used glue."

She tilted her head slightly, "Glue? But that would've taken some work, and you did it so neatly! Cello tape would've been easier."

"I agree, Fraulein. But I couldn't find tape in my home, only glue. My glue-wrapping skills impressed me, to tell the truth."

She rolled her eyes. "Impressed me too," she mumbled.

Klavier's eyes widened interestedly. "Impressed you, Fraulein?"

Ema felt a blush begin to show. "I didn't say anything of the sort."

He didn't let up his gaze and she rolled her eyes once more.

"Fine, fine," she muttered, "It's pretty cool. I wouldn't be able to do that so nicely."

He grinned and took the present from her, turning it and looking at his handiwork carefully before placing it in her bag with a quarter of it sticking out funnily. "Glad you like it, Fraulein."

Ema looked at him curiously. She never bothered before but she suddenly wondered what "fraulein" meant. She searched her list of all the German words she knew and came up with nothing. Besides, one of the few things she knew about German was that the F-word came from it. And that it meant "to strike". Yes, that was it. So, she decided to ask.

"Hey, what does 'fraulein' mean?"

"Pardon?"

"Fraulein. What does it mean? Is it anything special?"

A laugh escaped him. "Don't worry your pretty head over it. It does not mean anything of consequence."

She frowned as she realized he was hedging mildly. "Then can't you just tell me? If it really is nothing _special_."

"Fraulein, it-"

A loud beeping noise cut Klavier off and made Ema jump. She looked down at her watch that was currently beeping for attention and switched off the alarm. "Crap, I've got to be back at the precinct, break's over. Crap, _crap_." She raced out of his office and raised her arm crookedly in a rushed wave.

He walked to the door and looked out, smiling as he watched her run into the elevator and frantically jab the button. He shook his head watched the elevator light blink it's way down to the ground floor. Klavier then made his way to the picture window, watched a certain fraulein far below clamber into a taxi and watched it drive off.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Ema was tired and curious. The day was almost at an end and she was still wondering what "fraulein" meant. She couldn't ask any of her colleagues; rumors would be flying around the precinct in no time. And she shuddered to think how it'd be if they got to the Prosecutors' Office. "_Oh my, Detective Skye's asking about _German_ phrases? I wonder _whatever for_?"_

She groaned and looked around. Everyone else was still reading or writing some report or other. She was done and she was bored. The Internet was not to be accessed for fun and- Wait a minute. 'That's it, the Internet's dictionary!' Ema cheered silently and went on to an online dictionary.

"Fraulein" was typed in slowly and she twiddled her fingers in mild anticipation. 'I wonder what it means.' She pressed the "Enter" key and waited for the page to load while tapping the keyboard, suppressing nervous laughter.

_The term "Fraulein" is defined as a polite title for young, unmarried women. Directly translated, it means "miss" in English, to be used in front of a lady's name._

…

She stared at the screen and reread the definition. "That's it? _Miss_?" Her lips thinned in mild annoyance and then disappointment. It didn't mean anything special; just "miss". Ema sighed softly and forced her annoyance to come back. It was easier to handle than being disappointed. She narrowed her eyes and typed "German insults" in the Search bar.

"Right," she muttered as she wrote them down.

_Schweine, Saukerl, Arschloch._

She read them out quietly, testing how they sounded. Okay, menacing enough. She could figure out what the first and last meant; she was smart enough to compare them with her English dictionary.

She wasn't quite sure about what the second one was but the description gave her enough satisfaction. It said that it was an insult specifically for men and that was good enough for Ema. Never mind that she didn't have a clue about how it was supposed to be pronounced. She'd get it right, how hard could it be anyway? "Sau-kerl," she rehearsed and nodded.

Time's up. Everyone began packing up while Ema quickly made her way to the door, the Prosecutors' Office in mind. On the way there, she repeated the word "Saukerl" in her head, testing how it sounded with different accents. She decided the word was actually rather catchy.

Outside Klavier's office door for the second time that day, Ema knocked on the door and entered the second she heard a "Come in" from inside.

"Fraulein, it's nice to see you again," he said easily, a smile sliding on his face. She marched right up to his desk and stood in front of it, crossing her arms. "I found out the meaning of 'fraulein' on the internet just now," she stated coolly.

He looked surprised at her tone and a little confused. "Okay. That's…good to know," he said slowly.

She narrowed her eyes at him. "It doesn't mean anything special at all! It just means 'miss'. 'Miss'! That's it?"

Klavier visibly relaxed and he began to laugh as he realized what she was so worked up about. "I told you it wasn't anything special, _Fraulein_," he laughed, putting a little more emphasis on the last word.

"Then why'd you make it seem like it was such a big secret, you _saukerl_?!" Ema swung her arm to give extra strength to her accusation.

"But I did tell you it wasn't much. Really, Frau-," he paused and began laughing again. "What did you call me?"

"I called you a 'saukerl'," she sniffed, glaring at the guitar case beside her, refusing to look at his laughing face.

"Fraulein, where did you get that word?" he asked, still grinning.

She turned to glare at him. "The Internet," she said shortly.

More laughter. He repeated the insult carefully for her to hear and she couldn't help feeling mild awe at his accent. The insult just sounded so wonderful when he said it with its proper phrasing and tone. "I am guessing the Internet did not teach you what it meant or how to pronounce it?"

"I _do_ know what it means!" she exclaimed indignantly. "It's a low, rude German insult specifically for jerk men." His eyebrow raised in amusement. She was losing steam, and fast. Watching his grinning face, she felt her annoyance ebb and embarrassment rise to great amounts.

This was bad. She'd never been more embarrassed than she was now. Ever. Ema decided to make her exit quickly. Her cheeks felt like they were about to melt off her face as they colored rapidly.

"Creep," she muttered. Ema whipped around, ready to stalk to the door when she tripped from the excess momentum and landed on her front. The floor was covered with an obviously expensive soft carpet so the fall didn't hurt her. The embarrassment, however, wounded the little pride she had left that wasn't mutilated by her ridiculous show.

She didn't have to look at him to know that he was shaking with silent laughter. Ema pushed herself up to a sitting position as he squatted in front of her, smiling briefly before his face turned serious. Klavier looked at her for a moment and took in her blush.

"Fraulein," he called her quietly.

Ema felt her heart pick up speed and beat scatteredly. She could hear it pounding in her ears and she noticed the tempo was horribly off. She looked at him. "Yeah?"

"Were you really hoping that I was calling you something that meant…more?" He tilted his head and looked at her, his expression thoughtful, similar to the one he wore the day before.

Ema felt a fresh blush wave over her face and she looked at the floor, not being able to handle his gaze. She picked at the carpet for a second before looking back at him. She took a breath. "I was hoping that-"

A knock sounded at the door, surprising the both of them. Ema got up quickly and dusted her hands as the door opened. It was one of the office boys, coming to collect Prosecutor Gavin's reports that were to be sent to the archives. He greeted the prosecutor, nodded to the detective, took the files on the desk and left.

An awkward silence filled the room. Klavier was still looking at Ema, expression no less serious than before. Ema bit her lower lip and shuffled her feet, watching him carefully. Her heart still hadn't stopped pounding. If anything, it was getting faster.

She absently brought her hand to press against her heart for a second to try and calm it down. His eyes followed her hand and flashed back to her face. He gave a small smile, as if he knew exactly how her heart was behaving. He began to say something when the door opened again, another prosecutor entering the room this time.

"Prosecutor Gavin, I need your advice on a case I've been working on," the man stated briefly, before noticing the awkward tension in the room. He looked at Ema, then at Klavier before he suggested, "I'm sorry, I can come back some other time?"

Ema shook her head. "That's alright. I've got to be going. Good night, Prosecutor Gavin," she said quickly. She made her way to the door and opened it, turning around and looked at Klavier for a second, taking in his serious features as he watched her leave. As she shut the door, she heard a "good night" slip out of the room and her heart skipped a beat.

She made her way back home, sunk to the floor of her bedroom and released a breath that she felt like she was holding since she left his office. Ema leaned against the cool wall of the room and felt her heartbeat finally calm. She shut her eyes and placed a hand on her chest, uncertain of how she was supposed to be feeling at the moment.

"I need that stroll with Phoenix. Right about now," she announced to the empty room.

.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.

Ohh, boy! That's the longest chapter I've written so far!

So, there's good news and bad news, my pretties.

Good news is you've got a longer chapter this time.

Bad news is…well, I've got major exams coming up and I won't be able to write or go online for a month!

Alas, my heart aches. Exams are ridiculous, seriously. Oh, well, damn. Got to go through 'em either way.

Please review, I'd love to know what you guys think! Thank you so much, I absolutely adore all of you! I really hope you guys like the story enough to stick with it till after my exams...

Love,

Be


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